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Cooking School: Dish It Up!

Here’s a must on your Seattle to-do list: a cooking class at Dish It Up!—a cooking school-cum-kitchen store in the Magnolia Village neighborhood. “Classes here are much like a chef’s table,” says owner Andrea Reith. Local foodie celebrities take the helm most weeknights to teach subjects ranging from Heavenly Truffles to a Holiday Dinner Party. This season, author A.J. Rathbun’s Holiday Cheer class pairs libations and party fare, serving them up with a twist.

A.J., shown above, is a mixology and entertaining expert. His book Good Spirits won a 2008 International Association of Culinary Professionals cookbook award, and he has authored the just-released Luscious Liqueurs and Party Snacks. A site editor for the kitchen and home divisions of Amazon.com, A.J. has a résumé that includes rock band roadie, poet, and, naturally, bartender.

As students gather around the 16-foot counter in the comfortable Dish It Up! presentation kitchen, A.J. delivers instruction with a wit as dry as a martini. “One of my main focuses is to make students realize they can throw a great party and still have fun as the host or hostess. Just one or two signature drinks keeps the bar manageable. And like cocktails, party foods should have the right balance of flavors. With these five snacks, you’ve the makings of a classic cocktail party.”

Students first learn how to make the Bubbly Poinsettia, a champagne cocktail with gin, grenadine, lemon, and maraschino accents. The pale red-tinged sparkler pairs with Gorgeous Gougères, airy cheese puffs featured in Party Snacks. The duo receives enthusiastic approval from the class, and things are off to a rollicking good start.

From there, A.J. teaches four additional holiday-perfect pairings of drinks and nibbles, including a tropics-inspired non-alcoholic sipper and The Snow Angel, a creamy combination of chocolate vodka, crème de cacao, orange liqueur, and Irish liqueur.

Getting there
Dish It Up! is located at 2425 33rd Avenue W., Suite B, Seattle, Washington. Contact the school at 206/281-7800 for class schedules. Classes start at $70 per person.

Preheat broiler. Add cashews and cherries to food processor. Cover; process on high 3 to 5 seconds. Add cashew-cherry mixture to bowl. Crumble blue cheese into bowl; add pepper. Using wooden spoon, mix until well combined. Slice baguette into 1/4- to 1/2-inch-thick slices. Place slices on baking sheet; broil, 4 to 5 inches from heat, 1 to 2 minutes per side or until lightly browned (watch closely). Top each toast with large dollop of blue cheese mixture. Broil about 1 minute more to heat cheese mixture. Sprinkle with parsley. Makes about 36 crostini, 18 servings.

Remove leek-broccoli mixture from heat; transfer to food processor. Add salt and pepper. Cover; pulse 3 to 5 times until chopped but not mushy. Pour mixture into bowl; add cheese and ham. Stir to combine.

Unfold puff pastry sheet. Cut into 9 squares; cut each square into two triangles. Using pastry brush, lightly oil baking sheet with oil. Arrange triangles on baking sheet. Lightly brush each triangle with remaining oil. Bake 9 minutes. Remove the puff pastry triangles from the oven. Using spoon, carefully cut through the top few layers of pastry to create a hole. Spoon filling into hole and on top of each pastry triangle. Top each with strips of dried tomato. Return to oven; bake 3 to 5 minutes more or until golden. Serve hot. Makes 18 hors d’oeurves.

Rinse and dry strawberries; set aside. Finely shred peel from oranges; set aside. (Reserve oranges for another use.) Place chocolate in top of double boiler. Place over lightly simmering water (make sure water does not touch bottom of double boiler top). Cook and stir over low heat until chocolate is melted and smooth.

Add orange peel to melted chocolate. Chocolate mixture will firm up quickly. Gradually stir in enough whipping cream to make chocolate spreading or dipping consistency; adding more as needed. Dip each strawberry into chocolate mixture, or spread chocolate mixture over strawberries with small spatula. Place chocolate-covered strawberries on waxed paper-lined baking sheet. Chill 1 hour or freeze 20 minutes before serving. Carefully peel strawberries off paper to serve. Makes 36 to 40 berries.